Teamwork can be such a wonderful thing, especially when you all have the same vision and drive. It’s a group of individuals, if done right, who can grow to be as close as family. You have each other’s back no matter what, and you’re there to lift each other up when things are down. Most important of all, it’s when there isn’t one person or thing greater than the group.

I feel honored to work with Team Rise Together, a group of people with various backgrounds in entertainment and business. It truly is a selfless group that continuously helps each other. More important, I am proud to call these people friends who I can trust. I know that if I ever need anything in a pinch, I can go to them first. The same thing goes the other way around. There have been numerous times when someone in Team Rise Together reaches out to me, and I’m there in a flash. I am the type of person who loves to help people, and there is no greater gratification than helping a friend in need. I’ve been on a few different teams in the past, but this is the one that I am most proud of.

The beauty of Team Rise Together is that we are still growing. We are far from those exclusive cliques who turn their nose to anyone not involved. If you are a selfless, hard worker who believes in making dreams come true, then we want to work with you. It’s all about strength in numbers. As the saying goes, “Part of the ship, part of the crew.”

Like this:

In this episode of The Chouen And Only Show, Marc Chouen has another busy work week with meetings and acting. At the same time, holiday season is among us. Marc Chouen does his best to try and get all of his shopping done while maintaining his normal acting/producing schedule.

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: I am not a fan of social media. I do, however, understand the importance of it–especially in the entertainment business. If it wasn’t for my career, the only site I would have is Facebook so I could keep track of birthdays. The reason for this is because I’m actually a private person, and I also can’t comprehend living my life always on the phone. I, for one, am a huge fan of living in the moment and enjoying it. In today’s age, life is all about sharing these moments. In the marketing world it makes sense because I’m spreading my brand. But the question is: where do you draw the line?

Before I started this whole social media phase, I made a promise to myself to keep certain things private. There is a big part of my life that I would never share on social media. If it’s not in line with my brand or image, then I am not posting it. One major topic I stay away from is anything political. I won’t even like or comment on a post of this subject matter even if I do happen to agree. Why? It’s not part of my brand, nor do I want it to be. I do follow politics and have discussions about it with my friends, but anything controversial can be damaging to a brand (especially a new one). Another topic I try to avoid online is my family and my loved ones. This is just out of courtesy to them. They are not in the entertainment industry, and none of them want strangers stalking them out. If I do in the rare occasion post something with them, I ask permission and I do not tag them. It is important to me that those I care about are able to maintain their privacy.

If you have the same stance as I do regarding social media but your career requires you to have a following, I suggest you know where to create boundaries. Place rules for yourself and stick with it. Don’t post anything you wouldn’t want the whole world to know. Think of it like this: what you post is out there for everyone to see. My business consultant once said something to me I’ll never forget. He asked me, “Do you really want strangers to know who your niece is?” That is one thing that has stuck with me because he is right. The last thing I would want is someone finding my niece and tracking her down because of me. So while the power of social media can lead to great opportunities, it can also have damaging effects. To post, or not to post? If you have to ask, you probably already have your answer.

Like this:

Everyone has his/her own approach on how to tackle a role. Truth be told, there is no method that is better than the other. What matters most is what works best for you. I have tried a few different methods in my career. Some work better than others, depending on the role. There are times where a role is very similar to who I am personally, so I just go off my pure instincts according to the circumstances of the scene. In this case, it’s purely acting 101: listen and react.

The roles I truly enjoy the most are the ones where I am someone completely different. In order to have a full understanding of the character, I have to do a lot of research. For me, this involves more than the usual script breakdown. I want to dig deep into the character’s mindset. What I do for this is research similar characters. This could be a real life person that I may know, or a fictional character. Regardless, I do everything I can to study that person and borrow some things that I feel can help enhance the character.

I’ve had the honor of playing some really complex characters before. I’ve played sociopaths, killers, and repressed homosexuals just to name a few. With roles like these there are times where I take the character with me off camera. I want to see how these characters can interact in the real world (without killing anyone of course). It allows me to play the part as truthfully as possible. At the same time, I find things within myself that I never knew I had before. It’s actually pretty cool. The drawback with those types of roles, however, is that I need some time before I hop into something else so I can go back to being myself. That is why I choose not to do those roles as much, but certainly will for the right part.

As a performer, I highly suggest to try different things. These are just a couple of approaches that I’ve taken, but that doesn’t mean I’m closed off to anything else. If someone has his/her own technique or method, I always listen and give it a try. If it works, great! If not, then I’ll either move on or find a way to tweak it for my own liking. The point is don’t get stuck. Continue to learn and evolve. That’s how you eventually become great.

Working from home can certainly have its perks. You get to create your own schedule. There is nobody micromanaging you. You get to enjoy the company of your pet, if you are so fortunate. These same perks can also be drawbacks, if you let it. I honestly believe that working from home isn’t for everyone. It takes a certain amount of discipline to do so. Just think about how many possible distractions you can have in a day. If you give into it, then nothing will get done. That’s why it is so important to keep to a schedule.

Before I started this lifestyle, I made sure to create a schedule for myself and keep to it. When I am working from home, I am ridiculously strict when it comes to my schedule. It’s to the point where I actually keep an alarm for any given task that I do, and when the time is up I move onto the next task. This helps me get so much done in any given day. Beforehand, I would just work on something until I finished. Depending on what it was that I was working on, it could take up to a few hours or even an entire day and nothing else would get accomplished. It never led to the results I wanted and would just cause stress. Now I feel like I am more productive. My time is better managed, and it allows for some flexibility to do some errands throughout the day without feeling guilty.

Another key component is having passion for what you do. I love my career and will do anything for it. Social media, budgeting, and networking are some tasks that I wouldn’t otherwise like, but knowing what it means for my success forces me to enjoy it. Without passion for your career and keeping to a schedule, working from home can quickly turn into you just hanging out on the couch watching TV. Don’t let that be you. Be the boss you always wish you had.